For Becky
And for everyone that has shared their struggles
There was a night that I sat at a table-
-alone-
with a glass of sherry in front of me.
(Nasty stuff, that cheap sherry.
But I don’t drink much, and what did I know?)
I sat and thought about the tired,
sad,
messy business my life had become.
I briefly considered walking down the road-
-any road-
until I found someone else out wandering,
and I could rest my head on their shoulder and warm my hands in theirs.
But, I didn’t.
I wasn’t as brave as you.
I didn’t want anyone to know how soul-seared and brain-bogged I felt.
The sad stayed in my pocket,
-wadded up with the gas station and Dairy Queen receipts-
and dragged my heart down
down
down.
I wish I had been as open as you.
I wish I'd found more courage.
I wish I’d known that the feeling would pass.
I wish I’d thought of sharing it-
-airing it out and drying it off.
I’m sitting here this morning,
instead,
remembering that me and so proud of this you
and sending you light.
Shine.
Shine on forever.
~
Comments welcomed.
About the Creator
Judey Kalchik
It's my time to find and use my voice.
Poetry, short stories, memories, and a lot of things I think and wish I'd known a long time ago.
You can also find me on Medium
And please follow me on Threads, too!
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insight
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Keep reading
More stories from Judey Kalchik and writers in Poets and other communities.
Violence Begets
"Any last words, cowboy?" "None you'd understand, sodbuster." "Funny. That's Marshall Sodbuster to you. But I meant some last nugget that would help us in the adjudication of the myriad offenses counted against you and your gang. I wasn't asking for penitence."
By Adam Diehl5 days ago in Fiction
Comments (26)
I’m happy this was recognized by vocal on the RYV thread! Truly eye opening. Congrats, Judy!
Ah, it is great to have company. The been there, done that company. Stay strong. You are not alone. Brave warriors are we, by your side. Shine on, yesterday, carry us away to brighter days of light. Congrats.
You know what this leaves me with? I want to know what journey "you" took. Like I have that sense of how we think others find something easy, or hard, depending on where we are, and I wonder a lot about what path "you" took and how that feels from the inside. Beautiful poem.
Beautifully written poem.
This is beautiful, and I'm glad to know I'm not the only one feeling this way.
This was a very beautiful written melancholic poem, but also felt very insightful and uplifting! Great work Judey and congrats on Top Story!
The sad stayed in my pocket - know that feeling so thank you for putting it into the words that so often escape me. Congratulations on a deserved TS
Beautiful piece. Congrats on the TS.
The “down, down” dropped my heart. I saw the sadness in the pocket so clearly too. Superb poem.
I am so glad this was on the Vocal Thread This just hit me and awoke my emotions
Beautifully thxxxx
Scottish people by definition often find it hard to be open about their feelings, but Italians are marvellous at being emotional lol. So I feel like I have got stuck at the crossroads so many times. Sometimes I am good at sharing...other times I'm not. That's why I try to be so brutally honest and open in writing - because I'm not ready yet to face counselling? This is a beautiful piece, Judey. Your poetry continues to amaze me and I'm glad Vocal highlighted this because I missed it when it was first published. Congrats on a deserving and important Top Story!
Very well said. Definitely can relate, very well done ❤️
A poignant, elegant rendition of the regret that plagues those of us who struggle to open up. In some ways, this also reads like an ode to the type of people that we envy: that is, those who can.
So very relatable, Judey, I will be thinking about this poem for hours. Opening up is so hard for me, but sometimes I wish I had to the right people
Not me thinking you were gonna say walk down the road and get hit by a car, lol. I resonated deeply with your poem. I wish that I can be more open about sharing my feelings and troubles.
Beautiful.
Very beautiful
gorgeous work Judey!
Fabulous inspirational poem!!! Impressively written!!!💕❤️❤️
‘J’ — Not entirely certain with many of your stories aren’t written in the 3rd person. But such lovely ‘Schtick’ — L’Chaim 🍷— The other ‘j’
Amazing poem that is so relatable. Great post, Judey!
Breathtaking.
Such a heart-touching piece. Love it.
Heartbreaking, inspirational and powerful. Being the weirdo that I am, I really like the fact that the poem is followed up immediately by the first words on your profile: "It's my time to find and use my voice."